Medical Gown

ABSTRACT

A medical gown has a neck opening entirely surrounded by continuous material of the gown, wherein the neck opening is round at a front side of the gown and extends to a point at a rear side of the gown. Another medical gown has a neck opening entirely surrounded by continuous material of the gown, and having a slit at a rear side extending from a bottom edge of the gown to a point short of the neck opening.

CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION

This application claims benefit of United States Provisional ApplicationNo. 61/690,730 filed Jul. 5, 2012 by Tommarello et al. for “Passivecompliant medical gown—PCMG, which is incorporated herein by referencein its entirety.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

Aspects of the present disclosure are in the technical field of medicalgowns, and include a disposable medical gown and a method of making amedical gown.

Gowns are commonly worn by medical personnel to protect themselves andtheir clothing from contamination by bodily fluids, pathogens, and thelike when giving treatment to patients. There are two types ofdisposable medical gowns in common use.

One type is an open-backed “step-in style” gown, which is easy to don,but must be secured with ties both at the waist and at the neck.Securing the tie at the back of the neck is not always easy withoutassistance, and if the neck is not properly covered then the wearer maynot be adequately protected. Because the gown opens at the back, thewaist tie is typically attached at the front. The waist tie may fastenin the back, which is not always easy without assistance. Alternatively,each end of the tie may pass right round the wearer's body and the tiesare then fastened in the front, which requires long ties which present atripping hazard if they are not fastened immediately after the gown isdonned.

The other type is a “poncho-style” gown that drops on over the wearer'shead. That is not as easy to don, and in particular is not easy toremove, especially when the outside is contaminated. This style has theadvantage that it does not need fastening in order to provide adequateneck coverage. A waist tie may be provided in order to gather the waistin when the gown is being worn by a person smaller than the maximum sizethat the gown can fit.

It is desired to provide a gown that is easy to don and remove, reliablyprovides proper coverage for the wearer, and is easy and economical tomanufacture in quantity.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

According to one embodiment of the invention, there is provided amedical gown having a neck opening entirely surrounded by continuousmaterial of the gown, wherein the neck opening is round at a front sideof the gown and extends to a point at a rear side of the gown.

The gown may have a slit at a rear side extending from a bottom edge ofgown to a position facing the point of the neck opening.

According to another embodiment of the invention, there is provided amedical gown having a neck opening entirely surrounded by continuousmaterial of the gown, and having a slit at a rear side extending from abottom edge of the gown to a point short of the neck opening.

The position to which the slit at the rear side extends may be not morethan 6 inches from the neck opening.

The gown may comprise a body panel and two sleeve panels, folded along atop edge, the sleeve panels being joined to the body panel by seams atbases of the sleeve panels, the sleeve panels being seamed at loweredges to form sleeves, and the body panel being seamed at side edgesbelow the sleeves to form a body.

According to a further embodiment of the invention, there is provided amethod of making a medical gown, comprising: forming a body panel with acentral neck opening and with a slit extending from one end to a pointshort of the neck opening; attaching two sleeve panels to the body panelon either side of the neck opening; folding the sleeve and body panelsacross the middle to form a top edge of the gown; seaming edges of thesleeve panels opposite the top edge to form sleeves; and seaming sideedges of the body panel to form a body.

According to a further embodiment of the invention, there is provided amethod of removing a medical gown as mentioned above, comprising partingthe material of the gown from the slit to the neck opening.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The above and other aspects, features, and advantages of the presentinvention may be more apparent from the following more particulardescription of embodiments thereof, presented in conjunction with thefollowing drawings. In the drawings:

FIG. 1 is a front view of a gown according to an embodiment of theinvention.

FIG. 2 is a rear view of the gown shown in FIG. 1.

FIG. 3 is a top view of the gown shown in FIG. 1 in a partly assembledstate.

FIG. 4 is a rear view similar to FIG. 2 of an alternative form of gown.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

A better understanding of various features and advantages of the presentmethods and devices may be obtained by reference to the followingdetailed description of illustrative embodiments of the invention andaccompanying drawings. Although these drawings depict embodiments of thecontemplated methods and devices, they should not be construed asforeclosing alternative or equivalent embodiments apparent to those ofordinary skill in the subject art.

Referring to the drawings, and initially to FIGS. 1 and 2, one form ofdisposable medical gown indicated generally by the reference numeral 10comprises a body 12, two sleeves 14, and a waist tie 16. The body 12 andsleeves 14 are made of any ultrasonically bondable medical gradenonwoven material selected to provide the level of protection requiredfor the specific use. The material may be chosen to comply with UnitedStates Food & Drug Administration or other applicable regulations orspecifications. The material may be 11 gsm polypropylene or othersuitable lightweight, impervious material, depending on the level ofprotection required for a specific use.

The body 12 and sleeves 14 are folded at the top, bonded together at theseams 18 where the sleeves 14 meet the body 12, and bonded closed alongthe undersides 20 of the sleeves 14 and down the sides 22 of the body 12below the sleeves 14. The sleeves may end in elastic cuffs 40, formed bystrips of elastic material bonded to the material of the sleeves 14. Atthe center of the top of the body is a teardrop-shaped head opening 24,formed by approximately a semicircle 26 to the front, and a triangle 28to the rear. The rear of the gown is slit centrally. The slit 30 extendsfrom the bottom hem 32 to a point 34 a short distance below the tip 36of the triangular part 28 of the head opening 24, leaving a tab 38joining the two sides of the back of the gown between the points 34 and36.

The waist tie 16 is bonded across the front of the body 12 of the gown10, and may be formed from a strip of the same material from which thegown body 12 is made.

In order to put the gown 10 on, the wearer opens the back slit 30, andpasses the tab 38 over his or her head, and puts his or her head throughthe head opening 24 and puts his or her arms through the sleeves 14.Because of the back slit 30 and the teardrop head opening 24, the gownis much easier to put on than a conventional poncho-style gown. Becauseof the teardrop shape of the head opening 24, higher at the front thanat the back, the wearer's front is well protected against contamination,without the wearer having to manually fasten a neck tie. The teardrophead opening 24 allows a larger aperture than a conventional poncho gownwith the same frontal neck coverage. The frontal coverage of the gown ismore critical than the back, both by function and regulation, so thelarger exposure at the back of the neck form the triangular part 28 ofthe opening 24 is acceptable.

The wearer then stretches the ends of the waist tie 16 bonded to theback panel of the gown round the waist, and ties them at the front.

In order to remove the gown 10, the wearer unties the waist tie 16,breaks the tab 38, and removes the gown to the front, like aconventional step-in style gown.

As an example of suitable dimensions, for an “adult large” size gown 10,which will in practice fit normal human adults at least from mediumthrough XL, the body 12 may be 31″ wide and 48″ long when laid flat. Thesleeves 14 may be 20″ long (giving the garment a span of 71″ from wristto wrist) and may be tapered from 12″ wide at the base 18 to 4″ wide atthe wrist openings. The circular part 26 of the neck opening 24 may be6″ in diameter, and the triangular part 28 may extend to 9″ below thetop of the body 12. The tab should be formed so as to be strong enoughto maintain an attachment of the upper portions of the body panels 12when the gown is pulled onto the user, yet weak enough that it can bereadily torn or severed when removing the gown. In one embodiment, thetab 38 may be about 2″ wide between the points 34 and 36 in FIG. 2,although that width can vary depending on the material used for the gown10.

Referring now also to FIG. 3, in one method of manufacturing the gown10, a panel of material 50 twice as long as the body 12, and as wide asthe body or slightly wider, is provided for the body 12. The panel 50may be rectangular, and may be provided from a roll. The roll may bewider than the body 12, for example, a standard 36″ wide roll, in whichcase a 1″ strip may be cut from one side to form the waist tie 16. Theteardrop-shaped head opening 24 and the back slit 30 are cut through thestrip 50. In large volume production, all these cuts may be made in asingle pass from the roll through a rotary cutter.

Two separate panels 52 are provided for the sleeves 14, and are attachedto the body panel 50 at the seams 18. For large volume production, thesleeve panels 52 may be fed in sideways from another roll of material.The seams 18 may be formed by ultrasonic bonding. The waist tie 16 isbonded across the front of the body panel 50. Strips of elastic 56 maybe ultrasonically bonded or otherwise attached along outer edges of thesleeve panels 54 to form elastic cuffs 40.

The assembled panels 50 and 52 are then folded so that the front lies ontop of the back. The underarm seams 20 and body side seams 22 are thenbonded. The underarm seams 20 are positioned to form the tapered shapeof the finished sleeves 14 and the waste material outside the seams iscut away. The sides of the gown body 12 can similarly be tapered atseams 22.

All the offcuts are then collected and sent back to the supplier of thematerial, to be melted down and recycled.

The completed gowns 10 are then packaged for delivery to the customer.In an embodiment, the gowns are folded, interleaved, and packed in ashrink-wrapped package with a perforated line that can be torn open,similarly to facial tissue. Thus, when one gown is removed from thepackage, the first fold of the next gown is drawn out, ready to be takenquickly when it is needed, but the rest of the gowns remain clean withinthe package.

Referring now also to FIG. 4, a second form of gown indicated generallyby the reference numeral 60 is similar to the gown shown in FIGS. 1 to3, except that the waist tie 16 is replaced by a waist tie 62 of elasticmaterial. One suitable material is a tubular knitted elasticmanufactured of polyester and spandex, normally used for surgical facemask ear loops. Such a material is commercially available from RhodeIsland Textiles and other suppliers. The tie 62 is ultrasonically bondedto one back panel of the gown so that the relaxed length is shorter thanthe gown and eliminates or greatly reduces the above-mentioned trippinghazard. The stretched length is long enough to tie around an extra-largesize person.

As an example of suitable dimensions for an “adult large” size gown 60,the waist tie 62 has an unstretched length of 26 inches, with a middlesection 64 approximately 1″ long bonded to the body of the gown 60 andsections 66, 68, each approximately 12½″ long hanging free at each sideof the bonded section 64. The middle section 64 may be bonded to thegown approximately midway between the back slit 30 and one side seam 22,and approximately 21″ below the top fold 54, so that the loose ends areabout 14″ above the bottom hem 32 of the gown 60. The suggestedpolyester/spandex material can be stretched from 26″ to at least 58″with a tension of less than 1.5 pounds. That is sufficient to pass roundan Extra Large waist (42″ to 44″) with sufficient extra length to tie aknot in without difficulty.

The gown 60 may be made, donned, and removed by processes generallysimilar to those described above for the gown 10 of FIGS. 1 to 3.

While the foregoing written description of the invention enables one ofordinary skill to make and use what is considered presently to be thebest mode thereof, those of ordinary skill will understand andappreciate the existence of variations, combinations, and equivalents ofthe specific embodiment, method, and examples herein. The inventionshould therefore not be limited by the above described embodiment,method, and examples, but by all embodiments and methods within thescope and spirit of the invention.

Accordingly, reference should be made to the appended claims, ratherthan to the foregoing specification, as indicating the scope of theinvention.

1. A medical gown having a neck opening entirely surrounded bycontinuous material of the gown, wherein the neck opening is round at afront side of the gown and extends to a point at a rear side of thegown.
 2. A medical gown according to claim 1, having a slit at a rearside extending from a bottom edge of the gown to a position facing thepoint of the neck opening.
 3. A medical gown according to claim 1,wherein said position to which the slit at the rear side extends is notmore than 6 inches from the neck opening.
 4. A medical gown according toclaim 1, comprising a body panel and two sleeve panels, folded along atop edge, the sleeve panels joined to the body panel by seams at basesof the sleeve panels, the sleeve panels seamed at lower edges to formsleeves, and the body panel seamed at side edges below the sleeves toform a body.
 5. A medical gown according to claim 1, further comprisinga waist tie of elastic material bonded to a body of the gown at a middleportion of the waist tie and having free end portions at both sides ofthe middle portion, wherein the free end portions in an unstretchedcondition are shorter than the distance from the middle portion to abottom edge of the gown, and wherein the waist tie is elasticallystretchable to a length greater than a waist circumference of a largestintended wearer of the gown.
 6. A medical gown comprising: a body havinga bottom edge; and a waist tie of elastic material bonded to the body ata middle portion of the waist tie and having free end portions at bothsides of the middle portion; wherein the free end portions of the waisttie in an unstretched condition are shorter than the distance from themiddle portion to the bottom edge of the gown, and wherein the waist tieis elastically stretchable to a length greater than a waistcircumference of a largest intended wearer of the gown.
 7. A medicalgown according to claim 6, having a neck opening entirely surrounded bycontinuous material of the body of the gown, and having a slit at a rearside extending from a bottom edge of the gown to a point short of theneck opening.
 8. A medical gown according to claim 7, wherein the waisttie is bonded to the rear side of the gown laterally offset from theslit.
 9. A medical gown according to claim 7, wherein said point towhich the slit at the rear side extends is not more than 6 inches fromthe neck opening.
 10. A medical gown according to claim 6, comprising abody panel and two sleeve panels, folded along a top edge, the sleevepanels joined to the body panel by seams at bases of the sleeve panels,the sleeve panels seamed at lower edges to form sleeves, and the bodypanel seamed at side edges below the sleeves to form said body.
 11. Amedical gown having a neck opening entirely surrounded by continuousmaterial of the gown, and having a slit at a rear side extending from abottom edge of the gown to a point short of the neck opening.
 12. Amedical gown according to claim 11, wherein said point to which the slitat the rear side extends is not more than 6 inches from the neckopening.
 13. A medical gown according to claim 11, comprising a bodypanel and two sleeve panels, folded along a top edge, the sleeve panelsjoined to the body panel by seams at bases of the sleeve panels, thesleeve panels seamed at lower edges to form sleeves, and the body panelseamed at side edges below the sleeves to form a body.
 14. A method ofmaking a medical gown, comprising: forming a body panel with a centralneck opening and with a slit extending from one end to a point short ofthe neck opening; attaching two sleeve panels to the body panel oneither side of the neck opening; folding the sleeve and body panelsacross the middle to form a top edge of the gown; seaming edges of thesleeve panels opposite the top edge to form sleeves; and seaming sideedges of the body panel to form a body.
 15. A method of removing amedical gown according to claim 11, comprising parting the material ofthe gown from the slit to the neck opening.